Obama may never get immigration overhaul, and more must-reads

Immigration outlook: dimming. There’s growing pessimism on Capitol Hill that a sweeping overhaul of U.S. immigration laws is achievable in President Barack Obama’s second term if nothing passes this year, Politico reports. There’s little chance a version of the Senate-passed measure can get through the House even after the November elections. And that means lawmakers would have to start from scratch next year, just as Congress and the country gear up for the 2016 presidential primary season.

They got how many recruits for that?USA Today reports the National Guard spent $26.5 million to sponsor NASCAR racing in 2012 to bolster recruitment, but didn’t sign up a single new soldier. Missouri Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill is holding a hearing on the recruitment program Thursday and is assailing the Guard for “wasting a bunch of money on a very expensive sports sponsorship.”

The Republican-led House on Thursday is expected to approve a special committee to investigate the attacks on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya. But it’s still uncertain if Democrats will join the committee. The Associated Press reports Democrats are considering a boycott, but face a dilemma: They don’t want to add legitimacy to what they think is a partisan forum, yet they don’t want to lose their ability to counter GOP claims.

Off to the races: Alison Lundergan Grimes, the Democrat challenging Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, is out with her first TV ad of the cycle Thursday. The 30-second spot highlights efforts by Grimes, the Kentucky secretary of state, to improve voting procedures for overseas military members. McConnell is favored to win his primary over Louisville businessman Matt Bevin and face Grimes in the fall. Read more from Roll Call, and check out the ad:

Hey, big spender: This election cycle, conservative groups have spent three times as much attacking Republicans as Democrats. The Wall Street Journal has a look at a new Center for Public Integrity study finding third-party conservative groups have spent nearly $9.8 million going after Republicans. And on the other side of the aisle? Liberal groups have spent almost nothing attacking Democrats in federal races.